PSALM 24

The Psalm as Liturgy

Attempts have been made by scholars to categorize each of the psalms according to its type. But this is not an exact science by any means, and the process is complicated by the fact that often there are “mixed types” present. Thus, Seybold asserts the composite nature of this particular psalm. For example, the opening two verses of Psalm 24 could be considered part of a creation psalm and Psalm 24:3-6 could be characterized as a pilgrimage psalm. And some call it a “torah (or teaching) psalm.” But for purposes of this short post, the whole of Psalm 24 will be called a liturgical psalm. I will be quoting from RSV below.

When studying this type of psalms in a group setting, whether large or small, one way to engage the listeners from the start is to divide the verses into speaking parts assigned to different individuals or groups and then recite the whole psalm. This will give everyone a better idea of the way in which they were used during group worship. It is not necessary to try and duplicate exactly the way the various verses would have been utilized liturgically in ancient Israel, just to convey the basic notion of the liturgical nature of the words.

It is also helpful to keep in mind what our pastor keeps reminding us during worship service – we should not view it as if the congregation were watching him and the choir members performing for us. Instead all of us are the performers for an audience of one, God.

Psalm 24

Leader: The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein;

for he has founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the rivers. (1-2)

Group 1: Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD? And who shall stand in his holy place? (3)

Group 2: He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false, and does not swear deceitfully. (4)

Group 1: He will receive blessing from the LORD, and vindication from the God of his salvation. (5)

Groups 2: Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob. (6)

Group 1: Selah

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Leader: Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors! That the King of glory may come in. (7)

Group 1: Who Is the King of glory? (8a)

Group 2: The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD, mighty in battle! (8b)

Leader: Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors! That the King of glory may come in. (9)

Group 1: Who is the King of glory? (10a)

Group 2: The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory! (10b)

Group 1: Selah

Commentators such as Baigent and Jacobson, as well as several recent versions, break the psalm topically into three sections: vv. 1-2, 3-6, and 7-10. One could alternatively propose a two-part arrangement suggested by the appearance of the cryptic word “selah” at the end of verses 6 and 10. It is unfortunate that we don't really know what this word means. Various suggestions are that it is somewhat equivalent to “Amen,” indicates the point of a dramatic pause, or is the cue for a musical interlude. We may never know.

As to how the parts were originally parceled out among different speakers, Dentan suggests a setting in which the ark is brought into the temple in a procession. During this liturgy, a choir inside the temple sings or recites verses 1-6 while an outside choir accompanying the ark requests in verses 7-10 to be admitted. But Longman has a different take on the liturgy:

    “After a kind of entrance liturgy asking and answering the question of who can enter the holy place, the final verses are an interchange between two parties that are best understood as the priest or priests who are serving as gatekeepers to the city or temple and the priests who are accompanying the ark of the covenant back after a successful holy war. The latter call on the former to open the gates to allow entry (Ps. 24:7,9). The gatekeepers then ask, 'Who is the king of glory?' (Ps. 24:8,10), followed by the response from the first group...”

Finally, Jacobson, in commenting on vv. 7-10, more realistically states, “It is impossible to reconstruct where these processional verses were originally performed or who spoke which lines.”

Unity of the Psalm

The Jerusalem Bible feels that verses 7-10 originally referenced the entrance of the ark for the first time into Jerusalem while vv. 1-6 came from a much later date. This sort of parsing out of individual sections of the Bible practiced by source critics may be of some academic interest, but it does little to help us appreciate and apply the text as we currently have it. As Jacobson wisely states, “The theme of entrance unifies the poem. The poem has holistic integrity and should not be dissected.” As evidence of that opinion, he points to the unifying feature in that the “King of Glory of vv. 8-10 is the same Lord who first established his kingship by creating and founding the world (v. 1).”

Ross, after first noting the seemingly composite nature of the psalm, concludes that the “Bible portrays the Lord controlling the sea and the rivers (which are not deified), both at creation and in giving his people victory over their Canaanite enemies.” In agreement with that assessment, O'Dowd points to the interesting correspondence between creation imagery in Psalm 24:1-2 and the image of God as King (24:8,10). This portrays both God's reign over nations and the earth.

Original Setting

Craigie feels that “the original liturgical usage of the passage, is that of the return of the ark from war.” See Numbers 10:36. In the same vein, Holladay notes that “'Yahweh Sabaoth' is an ancient term probably meaning 'Yahweh of the armies'...this psalm must have originated at a time when the primary description of Yahweh was as a warrior, which is to say, early in the pre-exilic period. On the other hand, “because of the advanced stage of community formation reflected in vv. 3-6, a preexilic date hardly seems feasible for this psalm.” (Gerstenberger)

M'Caw and Motyer feel that it may have been composed for the event in II Samuel 6 or possibly for one of its annual celebrations. “Whether or not it was written for the occasion described in 2 Sam. 6:12-19 or that of I1 Kg. 8:1ff, it will probably have been used at later annual celebrations of these events.” (Baigent)

A number of additional commentators, such as Boling and Wright, point to the “warrior-ruler” image of God as evidence that the original setting was commemoration of the return after victory in war which was later celebrated annually “after a procession with the Ark and at the entry in spring or fall New Year's service into the temple courts.”

Old Testament Correspondences

G.W. Anderson sees parallels with the vision of Isaiah 6.

On the other hand, Tucker says, “The structures of Psalm 15 and Psalm 24 are nearly identical. The psalm opens with a question concerning who may enter the temple, followed by an answer (from a priest?) stipulating the particular qualifications for entrance. The psalm concludes with a blessing or an affirmation of those qualified to enter the temple.” Working against this identification is the fact that Tucker's similarities only apply to verses 3-6 of Psalm 24.

Psalm 24:1-2

The major issue in these opening verses involves possible Babylonian mythological references to the primordial battle between God and the forces of chaos represented by the waters. Bernard Ramm explains that the mythological view of v. 2 that God wrested with and conquered the forces of chaos represented by the ocean and the cosmological interpretation which pictures the land floating on a flat sea are disputed by many scholars. Concerning the latter point, Maunder translates v. 2 as “the earth is stretched out above the water, that is, the earth stands out of the water.” And Boling and Wright add that “it is improbable that the Israelite would have been thinking primarily in mythical terms.”

Ramm issues a dual caution: “It is improper to construct a so-called modern or scientific cosmology from the Biblical evidence; and it is also improper to construct a so-called modern or scientific cosmology from the Biblical evidence.” For some of the attempts in the latter direction, see articles in The Dictionary of Christianity and Science.

Psalm 24:3-6

Jacobson expresses what is perhaps the most important point regarding these verses when he states that “the surprise is that the transformations required of humans in order to enter into the holy space are not ritual (becoming ritually pure) but moral (becoming clean of hand and pure of heart).” This point will become important in considering the NT usage of this psalm.

Psalm 24:7-10

There are two predominant images in these verses. The first is that of gates. Kselman, somewhat fancifully says, “Confronted by the chaotic waters (v. 2), the (personified) city gates and towers were despondent and fearful (Ps. 46:1-3); now they are invited to 'lift their heads,' a sign of joy.” More likely is Baigent's explanation of “lift up” as “a call either to open wide possibly to rejoice and be exalted at the honour bestowed.” In that respect, we should keep in mind that “as a metaphor, [gate] represents the entire city.” (Phua)

M'Caw and Motyer add, “The command to lift up, or extend, the gates and archways implies, as Weiser says, that 'doors built by the hands of men are not adequate to admit the mighty God.'”

The second key image is that of the king. Tucker expresses as his opinion, “The kingship of Yahweh may be considered the 'root metaphor' of the entire Psalter.”

Subsequent Use of Psalm 24

Holladay notes that there is no explanatory superscription for this psalm in the Hebrew text, but the Septuagint assigns it to be read by the Levites on Sunday due to its association with Creation. The Mishnah followed that pattern, and the Dead Sea scrolls contain references to Psalm 24:7-10 “to celebrate God's final victory over the forces of darkness at the end of time.”

“The psalm was greater than the occasion, and has generally been interpreted as prophetic of Christ's ascension after victory over death and sin (see v. 8 and cf. Col 2:15; Heb. 2:14,15) and of His ultimate sovereignty over all (see v. 10 and Rev. 5:11-14; 17:14).” (M'Caw and Motyer)

“The Christian use of this psalm usually relates it to the entry into heaven of the risen and exalted Christ (cf. Heb. 9:12,24), and the Prayer Book therefore appoints it for Ascension Day. Some, however, have linked it with Advent or with Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem.” (Baigent)

In terms of specific passages in Psalm 24 that are alluded to in the NT:

    “The doctrine of creation that Paul [in I Corinthians 10] finds in Ps. 24:1 indicates that there is nothing wrong with the food itself, regardless of the ways others have misused it in their religious ignorance.” (Ciampa and Rosner)

    Pao and Schnable feel that Jesus' calming of the storm in Luke 8:22-25 exhibits a motif going back to the OT in that “the mastery of Yahweh manifested in his ability to control the waters/seas...and the presence of this idea is most apparent in the liturgical traditions of Israel” expressed in such passages as Psalm 24:1-2.

    Blomberg feels that Psalm 24:3-5 may underlie Matthew 5:8 and the identification in Psalm 24:5 of God as Savior have its later parallel in Luke 2:11 where Christ is identified as Savior.

I am truly amazed that in all the sources I consulted, I could find not one commentator who drew a parallel between Psalm 24 and Revelation 21. Look at the comparison below to see if you don't agree with me that there are some truly close correspondences. I have truncated the quotations somewhat for the sake of convenience.

Psalm 24                    Revelation 21

God created the earth (1a)

                                  I saw a new heaven and earth for the first heaven and earth had passed away (1a)

He founded the earth on the seas ( 1b)

                                The sea was no more (1b)

                                The city has twelve foundations (v. 14)

Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD? (v. 3)

                                He carried me away to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city                                            Jerusalem coming down out of heaven (v. 10)

Those who have clean hands and pure hearts (v. 4a)

                                But nothing unclean will enter it (27a)

Who do not lift their souls to what is false or swear deceitfully (v. 4b)

                                nor anyone who practices abomination or falsehood (v. 27b)

They will receive blessings from the LORD, and vindication from the God of their salvation (v. 5)

                                He will dwell with them and they will be his peoples...mourning and crying and                                         pain will be no more (vv. 3-4)

Such is the company of those who seek him (v. 6)

                                To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life. (v. 6)

Lift up your heads, O gates (vv. 7a,9a)

                                The gates to the New Jerusalem are described (vv. 12-21)

that the King of glory may come in (vv. 7b-8, 9b-10)

                                The city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light                                     (v. 23)